Paying for Internships

With a record 1.16m young people unemployed and not in training, I guess it’s not surprising to hear reports that young people are paying to gain work experience in a desperate attempt to bulk out their CV’s.

The practice’s reported in the news include interns paying between £50 - 200 / day for work experience, in addition to admin fees being charged by company’s offering services to find internships.

It disturbs me that people feel this is their only option and also that there will be plenty of people out there willing to exploit this practice. This doesn’t mean I agree that all work experience should be paid either. Offering services free of charge has long been a way of gaining experience but also proving to prospective employers an individuals determination to succeed in their chosen path. Offering employers money in exchange for work experience is not illegal and the moral issues are for those involved to contemplate.

It is illegal under The Employment Agencies & Employment Business Regulations 2003, to charge work seekers fees for finding work. Therefore the above practice is testing the limits of the legislation.

We regularly receive enquiries from graduates and students with regards to work experience opportunities. We also hold seminars for students studying relevant sector qualifications, in local Universities, geared at preparing them for the jobs market. There are also plenty of other companies out there that are still willing to invest in young people, train them up and help them realise their potential.

The Youth Contract announced by the government in November is reported to be offering subsidies worth £2,275 for employers to take on young people but if you are interested hurry as it will only be extended to a mere 160,000 young people.

The event is organised by Manchester Girl Geeks, a not-for-profit group which organises networking ...

08/03/2015 | Manchester - Auto Trader UK

The event is organised by Manchester Girl Geeks, a not-for-profit group which organises networking events, talks and hands-on workshops for women and girls with an interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

08/03/2015 | Manchester - Auto Trader UK

The focus of the 'Making IT Happen for Women' event will be to discuss methods and approaches which get more women into senior position, encourage talented women and girls to consider IT as a serious career option alongside Medicine or Law.

Speakers

Gillian Arnold
Chair of British Computer Society’s Women’s Network and Director of IT Services and Recruitment Company Tectre Ltd. Winner of the 2012 Everywoman Inspiration of the year award in 2012, GEM Tech Award for BCSWomen in 2014 and co-author of Women in IT: Inspiring the Next Generation.

Rana Tassabehji
Senior Lecturer, Bradford School of Management and leading researcher on the project ‘Technology and Tiaras’, a cross country investigation into what facilitates women working in the technology sector and how gender influences technology innovation.